Project description
Hybrid chalcogenides show promise for next-generation optoelectronics
High-performance, low-cost semiconductors are poised to transform the next generation of optoelectronics. Metal halide perovskites are excellent candidates for optoelectronics, yet their deployment has been held back by issues such as robustness and environmental compatibility. To tackle these challenges, the EU-funded MIX2FIX project plans to develop a new class of solution-processable optoelectronic devices based on organic-inorganic chalcogenides that are non-toxic and stable in air. The project eases the transition of optoelectronic materials from toxic lead halide perovskites to green hybrid chalcogenides. The project's work will have far-reaching implications for photovoltaics, displays and lighting applications and even for applications beyond optoelectronics, such as batteries and supercapacitors.
Objective
The new generation of optoelectronics seeks for emerging semiconductors which combine high performance with low cost. Lead halide organic-inorganic perovskites manifest as excellent optoelectronic materials for this purpose, but at the expense of robustness and environmental compatibility. This presents a major challenge which this research addresses directly. Viable alternatives have to be identified. To tackle this challenge, MIX2FIX proposes to develop a new class of solution-processable optoelectronic devices based on air-stable, non-toxic metal chalcogenides endowed with an organic part, which will facilitate solution-processing and potentially enrich the compounds with the spectacular properties of halide perovskites. To achieve this, the CoG project has set the following objectives: (i) designing and developing optoelectronically-active, organic-inorganic chalcogenide thin films that have never been explored before, by mimicking strategies from established perovskite technology, (ii) devising means to improve their optoelectronic quality so as to be comparable with the best single-crystal semiconductors and (iii) implementing optimized materials into boundary-pushing PV and LED devices. Addressing these objectives will enable the development of novel functional hybrids at the boundaries of perovskite and chalcogenide thin films. With this, optoelectronics with efficiency and stability, comparable or higher than those of lead halide perovskite or chalcopyrite devices, will be demonstrated. This project will therefore permit the transition for emerging optoelectronic materials from toxic lead halide perovskites to green hybrid chalcogenides. Consolidating this unproven but disruptive technology will secure sustainable future for other areas of interest beyond photovoltaics, displays and lighting such as in X-Rays detectors and phototransistors or even beyond optoelectronics, in systems such as batteries and supercapacitors.
Fields of science
- natural sciencesphysical scienceselectromagnetism and electronicsoptoelectronics
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringcoating and films
- natural sciencesphysical scienceselectromagnetism and electronicssemiconductivity
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuelsrenewable energysolar energyphotovoltaic
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
ERC-COG - Consolidator GrantHost institution
15341 Agia Paraskevi
Greece